


back again (you and i)

by AshDoesFandom, cheesecakesandlovesquares (AshDoesFandom)



Series: that in black ink my love may still shine bright [1]
Category: Miraculous Ladybug
Genre: Action, Adrien Agreste Needs Help, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Angst, Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir Needs a Hug, Angst, Blood and Injury, Chat Noir Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Lady Noir, Dissociation, Emilie Agreste awakens, F/M, Hurt/Comfort, I literally do not know how to tag this, Identity Reveal, Lila Rossi Redemption, Love Triangles, Marinette Dupain-Cheng Angst, Marinette Dupain-Cheng Needs a Hug, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug & Lila Rossi Friendship, Marinette is a BAMF, Memory Loss, Minor Emilie Agreste/Gabriel Agreste | Papillon | Hawk Moth, Minor Gabriel Agreste | Papillon | Hawk Moth/Nathalie Sancoeur, Miraculous Holder Lila, Miraculous Ladybug Love Square, News Media, Not Beta Read, Platonic Relationships, Post Reveal, Post-Reveal Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Post-Reveal Pre-Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Tiger Miraculous, someone tell me how to tag, the lilanette agenda continues, the saga continues, this fic is a MESS, we die like fucking men, world finds out
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-04-25
Updated: 2020-04-25
Packaged: 2021-03-01 20:08:59
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Graphic Depictions Of Violence
Chapters: 1
Words: 7,001
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/23832901
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AshDoesFandom/pseuds/AshDoesFandom, https://archiveofourown.org/users/AshDoesFandom/pseuds/cheesecakesandlovesquares
Summary: “I’m sorry.”He huffs out a laugh. “You’re sorry I lost?”“I’m sorry you lost someone.”His eyes close briefly.Marinette can just make out the final Akuma in her peripheral, hovering in the shadows, but she keeps her eyes trained on the man before her.The rose flutters to the ground. Mr. Agreste stands up and adjusts his suit jacket. “Well then. Let’s get on with it.”
Relationships: Adrien Agreste | Chat Noir/Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug & Lila Rossi, Marinette Dupain-Cheng | Ladybug & Nino Lahiffe
Series: that in black ink my love may still shine bright [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1690798
Comments: 16
Kudos: 303
Collections: Miraculous Revealed Extra





	back again (you and i)

**Author's Note:**

> as requested, the reveal and battle from marinette and adrien's perspective. get ready for a long one boi.

Marinette’s day starts with Lila dropping a book loudly on the nightstand next to the bed.

She’s been sleeping at Lila’s apartment for the past three days because both of their parents are out of town—Lila’s on business and Marinette’s on their anniversary—and Lila had relentlessly pestered Marinette until she had finally agreed to stay the weekend.

It was more surprising to Marinette than anything, who had been fairly positive the brunette had been merely _putting up_ with her company for the sake of having a familiar dorm mate who didn’t complain about her being out at all hours of the night. Either Lila genuinely liked Marinette—which was such a strange concept to the bluenette that she’d immediately shaken the thought away—or she was lonely since all their university friends were home for the summer.

The second option was more likely, considering Lila has been nothing but a complete and utter bitch to Marinette since she’d put her up in her guest room. It’s not like this was something unusual, as Lila tends to be a bitch more often than not, but it’s not exactly something Marinette ever _enjoys_.

It makes Marinette wonder why she chose to turn the other cheek with the Italian girl, but then she remembers that keeping your enemies close is always a good idea, and hanging out with Lila on a regular basis is doing wonders for the ex-terrorist-accomplice’s attitude.

Also, if Marinette’s being completely honest, Lila is strangely compelling in the way a massive train wreck is. Impossible to look away from, fucking chaotic, and a danger to society.

Either way, Marinette enjoys Lila’s company for the most part. Even when she’s being a complete bitch at 8:37 fucking AM.

“ _Whyyyyyyy_ ,” Marinette whines, pulling a pillow over her head.

“It’s morning, motherfucker.”

“It’s too early.”

“It’s like 8, dummy. I’m hungry and I’m tired of listening to you snore.”

“I don’t snore.”

“Uh-huh.”

Marinette pokes an eye out of her cavern of blankets and pillows. Lila is leaning against the guest room desk, picking at a nail with disinterest. She looks worlds away from the girl she’d known in as a teenager. Her hair, now shoulder length, falls in loose waves with streaks of magenta highlight the tips. Instead of the tight, designer clothing the girl used to wear, she wore a pair of black yoga pants and a crop top that showed off the rather impressive purple and silver tattoo of a butterfly on her ribs that Marinette had been present for when she had it inked.

(“ _Isn’t a butterfly a little on the nose?_ ” _Marinette had asked, trying to keep her voice neutral._

_“I’m taking butterflies back, bitch,” Lila had replied, nose in the air. “Hawkmoth doesn’t get to ruin them for me.”_

_Marinette hadn’t pointed out that technically_ Lila _had ruined butterflies for herself by consorting with Hawkmoth, mainly because they had been getting along better recently and she didn’t want to ruin a good thing.)_

It was jarring to think of the girl Lila once was in comparison to the relaxed one sitting on the desk across from her.

Until, of course, she opened her mouth.

“Also, I want to know why your boyfriend keeps calling you,” Lila says, waving Marinette’s phone.

Marinette groans. “Stop stealing my phone. Also, Luka and I broke up.”

“I meant the blonde one.”

Marinette frowns for a moment before flushing.

“I-shut up,” she snaps, sitting up and grabbing the phone from Lila. “Adrien and I _aren’t_ —”

“The _other_ one, idiot,” Lila says, looking smug.

There’s a pause where Marinette frowns down at her phone. _Six missed calls from Trash Kitty_. _1 text message._

Her eyes widen. “I—”

“It’s real cute that you call him Kitty. Is that some sort of fetish. Like when you’re in bed does he like—”

“Oh my god, Lila, _shut up,”_ Marinette wheezes.

“I can’t believe you think I’m dumb enough _not_ to know,” Lila says, crossing her arms. “I mean, you aren’t even good at hiding it. It’s been obvious for _years_ , Dupain-Cheng.”

Panic climbing in her throat, Marinette pushes to her feet. _Fuck_. “I don’t know what you’re—”

“I mean, yeah, everyone knows Chat Noir has been interested in you for years, but this innocent routine has to stop,” Lila continues, ironically oblivious to Marinette’s panic and sudden relief. “Alya has an entire page on her dumb blog dedicated to candids taken of him on your balcony and—why are you looking at me like that?” Lila eyes her suspiciously.

Relieved that Lila _hadn’t_ somehow figured out her identity and was talking about Chat Noir’s non-existent crush on her civilian persona— _ha! as if!—_ Marinette flops back on the bed.

“And here I thought you woke me up for something important,” she mutters, pulling a blanket over her head.

Lila rolls her eyes. Not that Marinette could see her, but she knew. “Whatever. I’m going out for coffee. Want anything?”

“Yeah, 12 espresso shots.”

There’s a snort and bedroom door opens and clicks shut. Marinette listens for Lila’s footsteps in the hallway to fully disappear before poking her head out of the covers and grabbing her phone.

She taps out her passcode, feeling apprehensive.

Marinette had Chat Noir’s number because they were friends, but when Ladybug and Chat Noir had decided to contact information, they agreed to do it across through a different texting app rather than exchanging numbers for identity reasons.

This is why Marinette has Chat Noir saved under both _Trash Kitty_ and _furrypornXD._ When he’s texting Ladybug he’s _Trash Kitty_. Which is why Marinette is concerned.

There were only a handful of reasons why Chat Noir would be calling Ladybug in between the hours of 2 and 5 in the morning, and none of them are good.

Marinette clicks on the text message he’s left.

“ _Identity compromised.”_

Marinette stares at her phone, rereading the text again. And again. And again.

Then,

“Well, _fuck_.”

* * *

Here’s the thing.

Most everyone is out of town right now. Marinette and Lila are back in Paris—both mutually having decided to forgo summer classes—but except for maybe Adrien who was fuck knows where in the city—no one has seen much of him after he left his father’s house—Nino is the only person Marinette knows for sure is in Paris. 

She’d given Chat Noir a call a few weeks ago, but he’d regretfully informed her that he could barely get away for patrols as it was, so hanging out was not an option. So Marinette has been hanging out with Lila exclusively, surprised that the Italian girl still happy to hang out with her even if she isn’t obligated to. Before summer vacation came and blessed Marinette with hours of free time, a few of her friends—Nino in particular—had complained that Marinette was flaking out on them, but it hadn’t been intentional, really. She was just so tired all the time between classes and patrol that she consistently found herself canceling plans with her friends.

But then after her semester let out, when Alya had invited her to see Kitty Section—or whatever they’ve rebranded it now—in San Francisco this weekend, Marinette had still immediately declined.

Yeah, some of it was Luka and everything surrounding their breakup, but mostly it was the anxiety of being outside of Paris for an extended period of time.

“You could also just teleport with Kaalki,” Tikki had suggested, kindly.

Marinette had shrugged. “I have things to do.”

“But it’s the weekend! You should do something fun for once!” her Kwami had protested.

Marinette had just given her a strained smile and hadn't pursued the conversation. 

So, everyone was out of town except for probably Adrien and definitely Nino, who was currently not talking to her. This is why Marinette hadn’t called for backup when she received Chat’s call and had instead flown like a creature possessed over the rooftops, repeatedly calling her partner and vaguely regretting the decision not to have him reveal is identity to her when she became the Guardian.

Honestly, she understood Master Fu and Tikki’s argument, but she was the Guardian now _for fuck’s sake_. She probably should know the identity of all of her Kwami Holders.

Anyway. There were precious few Kwami holders in town the morning Marinette received a text from her partner about compromised identities, and even though it had her shaking with anxiety before she even got out the door, she hadn’t know the day would end with her partner’s _blood_ staining her new Jagged Stone merch hoodie.

It happens like this.

Ladybug calls Chat Noir at 7am. She’s made her excuses to Lila—more like texted a frantic message saying something about a family emergency—and transformed as soon as she was in a place where she was sure she wasn’t being watched. Then, as she leaps rooftop to rooftop, she gives her kitty a call.

It rings. And it rings. And it rings.

Ladybug hangs up in frustration, resisting the urge to throw her yoyo-converted phone.

It would be 11 more hours before she would find her partner in the basement of the Agreste mansion, quiet and detransformed.

* * *

Adrien’s day ends with him bleeding to death in the arms of his partner.

It starts like this: Natalie calls him.

It’s been an entire year since he looked his father dead in the eye and renounced his entire inheritance. Since then, he’s been living like every other young adult his age that he knows: working at least two part-time jobs, and just scrapping his way through a Physics Degree at University. He’s about three weeks behind on his rent, has half a cabbage and some salad dressing in his fridge and hasn’t purchased designer clothes in like 8 months.

His days are spent pouring over homework and goofing off on his phone when he’s at work and his nights are filled with watching trash reality TV and moonlighting as Chat Noir.

It’s exactly the kind of life he wants and wouldn’t trade it for the world.

Which is why, on the day before Adrien’s _worst day ever_ —not that he knows that it’s going to be _his worst day ever_ —he hits _decline_ when his phone lights up with a call from his father’s secretary. 

There’s a pause, where he stares at the black screen for about five seconds, and then it lights up again.

With a heavy sigh, the blonde hits _accept_ and brings the phone to his ear. “What.”

“ _Decided to finally man up, did you?”_ the voice on the other end pleasantly inquires.

Adrien hangs up.

The phone rings again. Adrien picks up. “I can do this all day.”

“ _So can I.”_

“What do you want.”

_“I just want to talk.”_

“I’m not coming back.” Adrien’s thumb hovers over the _end call_ button.

“ _We can meet and the destination of your choice.”_

“How about no—”

“ _Adrien. There’s something you need to know about your mother.”_

There’s a lengthy pause. Adrien pulls his phone away from his ear and stares down at it for a long moment.

Then,

“Where do you want to meet?”

* * *

Adrien looks hilariously out of place at the high end restaurant in the ratty hoodie he stole from Alix last month and his ripped jeans. He watches in amusement as Natalie’s lips curl at his unkempt hair pulled back into a ponytail, the scratches on the side his face—he fell into a gutter last night trying to achieve the perfect backflip™, much to his lady’s amusement—and the obnoxious, hot pink _Hello Kitty_ sunglasses that he’d swiped from his coworker, Ashley, last week that were pushed up on his forehead.

However, the woman he’d once regarded as a second mother says nothing about his appearance and orders them breakfast.

* * *

Later Marinette—his partner—would cautiously ask him how he went from having dinner with his estranged father’s secretary at a 5 star restaurant to Hawkmoth’s hideout.

In truth, he won’t be able to exactly tell her.

He’ll remember certain things like snapshots; disconnected memories wrapped up in his numb mind.

Natalie tells him that his mother is alive and his world turns grey. 

Adrien has mourned his mother, grieved his mother, and eventually has made peace with the fact that she’s gone. He’s even made peace with the fact that perhaps she hadn’t been the best of parents—maybe better than his father, but not by far.

But he’s made peace with it all and put it behind him. He’s still a little lost, still very broken, but he’s getting there.

So when Natalie looks at him gravely and tells him that Emilie Agreste is indeed still alive, Adrien feels his carefully constructed reality start to crumble.

He barely remembers numbly getting in the car with her or arrive at the Agreste Mansion, but he vividly remembers the elevator doors opening. There’s a coffin of sorts in the center of the room. Silver cocoons coat the ceiling and walls. White butterflies rest by a large window, purple light cascading in and giving them an unsettling hue.

There’s a figure, shrouded in dark purple, standing next to the coffin

Natalie walks ahead of him toward him. Bile rising in Adrien’s throat, he has just enough of his wits about him to pull his phone out and quickly send a text before the two turns around.

When Natalie reach the dais, the pair turn to face him. 

Then,

“Now. About your Miraculous.”

* * *

_(Adrien never asks how she finds him, but Marinette ends up telling him later._

_“It was Tikki,” she’ll say, worry her lip between her teeth as he watches her from his perch on the counter. “I looked for you for hours and I finally just. Detransformed and asked her who you were. It wasn’t difficult to put the rest together.” Her lips quirk. “Very anticlimactic. I expected finding out your identity to be more dramatic.”_

_He’ll raise an eyebrow at her and she’ll laugh. It’s a stilted sound._

_“You know, romantic moment in the rain, under the Eiffel Tower, you proclaiming your love for me while we’re surrounded by our enemies. The usual.”_

_Adrien will snort. “Yeah, that sounds about right.” He’ll pause for a moment. “I thought the Kwami’s were against us knowing. She really told you?”_

_Marinette will give an annoyed huffed. “She didn’t want to, but finally conceded after I told her that the Kwami Guardian really should know the identities of all her holders.”_

_Adrien will hum. Then, “How did you know where I was?”_

_Here his lady will shrug. “As I said, it wasn’t hard to put the rest together. I checked your apartment, it was empty so I tried the next best place: your dad’s house. The safe was open and I just…” She’ll pause, suddenly hesitant. “I didn’t expect to find—”_

_“Yeah,” Adrien will cut in, a stab of panic shooting through his chest. “Yeah.”)_

* * *

The fight is quick.

It begins with Ladybug throwing herself at Hawkmoth in an attempt to get the ring back and ends with her handing over her earrings as Mayura presses a knife to Adrien’s throat.

His lady takes her earrings off and leaves a familiar figure in place.

She’s wearing a hoodie—a piece of Jagged Stone merch that Luka had gifted to her a few years ago—and a pair of faded jeans. Her hair is pulled haphazardly back into a ponytail and she’s wearing a pair of pink, scuffed tennis shoes that he’s seen a million times over the past few years.

Marinette Dupain-Cheng hands over her Miraculous to Hawkmoth.

In another universe Adrien will have a moment where it all becomes clear—where the line between his partner and his former classmate blur as the two become one and he realizes the fool he’s been the entire time.

But in this universe he only feels a sort of numb acceptance. The acceptance of something he’d really known the whole time but hadn’t quite put together.

Then Hawkmoth detransforms. Adrien will later wonder why it hadn’t clicked in his brain, the correlation between Hawkmoth and Gabriel Agreste—considering the Agreste Mansion, Nathalie being involved, and his _mother_ —but in that moment Adrien’s world goes from grey to _red_. 

* * *

Marinette miraculously ( _ha_ ) manages to recover both of the Miraculous like this:

Gabriel Agreste makes a wish—a reality-altering wish—and Emilie opens a pair of eyes that Adrien sees in the mirror every morning.

And then—

 _Something happens_.

It was some sort of twisted irony, Adrien supposed, that Gabriel Agreste had dedicated 7 years of his life to terrorizing all of Paris for two magically pieces of jewelry, just for it all to fall apart. Perhaps it was some form of bad Agreste luck his family had contracted, but he was sure if he asked Marinette she would have told him that wishes come with powerful prices.

He supposed that Gabriel hadn’t ever expected the price to come at Emilie Agreste’s soul.

She comes back…well, _wrong_. She doesn’t remember anything. Emilie Agreste looks from her husband, to her son, to her husband’s lover and asks them who they are and Gabriel has a _meltdown_.

Natalie detransforms and runs to the man who’s fallen to his knees, and then Emilie is lunging at her, fingers grasping the Peacock Miraculous and trying to rip it away and then suddenly Marinette is grabbing the Black Cat Miraculous off Gabriel’s finger in one smooth motion and transforming.

Lady Noir has barely drawn a breath before she’s shouting out _cataclysm_ and leaping toward a stunned Gabriel Agreste.

It’s not much of a fight. She makes quick work of the emotionally wrought man and takes back her earrings with almost zero resistance—the two other women are too caught up in their scuffle to notice. Lady Noire is just slipping the Ladybug Earrings back in place when Emilie regains the Peacock Miraculous.

There’s a pause as the woman stares at it.

Then,

Lady Noire grabs Adrien’s hand as the transformation starts.

“Kitty, _snap out of it!_ ”

Adrien snaps out of it.

His life stops running like a slideshow—snapshots in grey, disconnected, disjointed—and reality comes crashing down.

“Technically, you’re the kitty right now,” he says, letting himself be pulled into the elevator. Lady Noir makes a strangled noise, something between amused and panicked, and starts rapidly pressing buttons, trying to make the door close.

“Plagg, claws in,” she grits out, as the elevator doors swiftly slide shut, leaving behind the image of Gabriel Agreste lying unconscious on the floor and Emilie standing over Natalie, triumphant and transformed.

“We’re just _leaving_?” Adrien croaks.

“I don’t want us to stick around for this.”

“But—”

“You’re in no condition to fight,” Marinette says, pressing buttons frantically, trying to get the elevator to go back up.

“I’m not _injured_ —”

Marinette and Plagg turn and give him matching _looks_ as the elevator started to move. “Adrien, you just had some sort of episode,” Plagg says, voice careful. “You just…got in the _car_ with her. And then didn’t do anything.”

“I’m fine.”

“You’re shaking,” Marinette says softly, her hand slipping into his.

Adrien belatedly realizes that she’s right. His entire body is trembling so hard his can barely stand. Closing his eyes, he places the hand not tangled in hers against the wall. “Okay.”

“We need to regroup and come up with a plan,” she continues, voice still lowered as if he’s going to startle at any moment. “Maybe get the authorities involved. Now that we’ve know their identities we can get a warrant for their arrest.”

His eyes fly open. “The Butterfly Miraculous.”

Tikki, who’d been silent since Marinette had brought her back into existence by putting her earrings back on, makes a startled sound.

“Did you get—?”

“Shit! I didn’t,” Marinette growls. “I was too worried about Adrien to remember. God, if he sends an Akuma…” She pauses. “We need a plan.”

The elevator doors open to the main floor and Marinette grabs Adrien’s wrist again. “I really don’t want to leave them here, but with our identities compromised, I need to get the Kwami Box somewhere safe.”

Adrien tries to swallow, but chokes at his dry throat. “Okay. Okay, where’s the Kwami Box?”

Marinette leads him out of the mansion, looking distracted. “It’s at my parents’ house. I couldn’t very well take it to Lila’s apartment with me, so I hid it there.”

Adrien nods jerkily. “Cool. Right. Okay. We can do this.”

Plagg and Marinette exchanged another _look_.

“Cha— _Adrien_ ,” his lady says, putting an arm on his shoulder.

“We’ll talk later,” Adrien says, not looking at her. “Let’s just do this.”

* * *

They transform on the way and Ladybug gives the Chief of Police a call. Chat Noir tunes most of it out, choosing to focus on other things. Like the air that smelt like rain. Or the fact that the sun was setting ( _how long had he been in that basement?)_. Or you, the sound of an Akuma terrorize the citizens of Paris. _Shit._

By the time they reach the street where the Dupain-Cheng Bakery resides, there’s already three Akumas.

“ _Fuck,_ ” Ladybug hisses, pulling Chat Noir into an alleyway across the road from her former house. “I didn’t expect him to gain consciousness _that_ quickly, let alone start Akumatizimg people.”

Chat Noir signs, rubbing the bridge of his nose between two fingers. “Great, so what now?”

* * *

_Now_ apparently meant Chat Noir keeping an eye out on her roof while Ladybug throws the Kwami Box and whatever else she can find that Hawkmoth could use against them into a backpack. A few minutes later and her head pops out through the trapdoor.

“Got it.”

“Do we need backup?”

“Not yet. I don’t even know who’s in town right now. Chloe maybe?”

Chat Noir shakes his head. “She’s in London. Texted me this morning to cancel our dinner plans.”

Ladybug raises an eyebrow. “Dinner plans?”

Her partner gives her a flat look. “She’s into Sabrina, not me, ‘Nette.”

She flushes slightly, chastened. “Right. Sorry. Anyway, we don’t need to drag anyone else into this yet. We’ve got this handled.”

* * *

As Adrien lies face down in an alley, he decides that they very much _do not_ have this handled. They were immediately ambushed by _four_ Akumas before they could even get off her roof. He didn’t even remember who the Akumas were or what their general theme of insanity was. All he remembered that there had been a brief moment where Ladybug had lost her grip on the bag holding the Kwamis and was distracted just long enough for an Akuma to swoop down on her.

He doesn’t think, he just does what he always does and throws himself between his lady and imminent death.

The steel sword goes straight through his side, which, well _hurts._ The pain doesn’t _truly_ register, however, until the Akuma _pulls it back out_.

He doesn’t realize that he’s screaming until about ten minutes later, after Ladybug has rapidly knocked all four Akumas out, tossed the backpack over her shoulder, and drags him into a hiding place between a dumpster and a brick wall a few blocks away. Chat Noir just has the lucidity to mumble _claws out_ before his vision darkens.

It comes back a few minutes later to a frantic, detransformed Marinette who’s begging him to wake up.

“Oh god,” she says, when his eyes open again. “Stay awake, _please_ stay awake.”

“S’rry,” he mumbles, speech slurred, bloodied hand tangled in the sleeve of her hoodie. “Sh’ld of. Known.”

“What?” his lady mutters distractedly, pressing _down_ on the wound.

Adrien squirms under it. “I was wrong,” he whispers, tongue regaining mastery over itself as his body goes cold and numb. He vaguely comes to the conclusion that he’s going into shock. “It was you,” he realizes, as it finally, _finally_ hits. He stares up at Marinette, at his _lady_. “It was always _you_.”

The last thing he sees is a pair of watery blue eyes, wide with fear, searching his own. The last thing he hears is the girl he loves shouting in panic as everything fades to darkness again.

Adrien’s day ends with him bleeding to death in the arms of his partner. 

* * *

He’s not quite dead when Marinette makes it to Nino’s apartment.

Nino’s not her first choice, but he’s also certainly not last. Honestly, she wished Kagami was in town. The girl not only had medical training—there had been a brief stint where she’d thought she wanted to be a doctor before she switched her degree to psychiatrist—but she was one of the few people out there that Marinette knew she could trust with their identities.

So Nino wasn’t her _last_ choice, but he wasn’t exactly the first person Marinette wanted to go to. Marinette slides Adrien’s arm over her shoulder and holds him up against her side as taps on her phone with the other hand. She does a quick survey of the class group chat, trying to gauge where everyone is.

It’s only as she scrolling through the chat that she sees it.

_couffianeintherain: Everyone turn on the news. Now._

It was sent about an hour ago—about 40 minutes after she’d called the police and headed toward her childhood home.

Aware that she _really doesn’t_ have time to news surf right now, Marinette turns the screen off on her phone and tucks it away.

It turns out that Nino _is_ the only person in town that she can trust, so with a weary sigh, she slips her phone back into her back pocket and readjusts her hold on Adrien. She’s just about to activate her transformation and hightail it to Nino’s apartment, when something catches her eyes. On one of the huge screens in the city square, footage of two reporters—one of them Nadja, Marinette realizes—is playing.

_“...and the city is going under lockdown. With six Akumas spotted and our heroes nowhere to be found, authorties have turned their attention to the recently captured Mayura who has been revealed to be non-other than fashion icon Gabriel Agreste’s personal secretary.”_

Marinette’s hold tightens on the unconscious boy leaning on her.

 _“However,”_ the other reporter continues, picking up where Nadja left off, “ _the identity of Mayura is not the main topic of interest here tonight considering this information she gave the Chief of Police not an hour ago: the identities of Paris’ beloved heroes, Ladybug and Chat Noir.”_

She’s only vaguely aware that her knees are giving out and she’s slowly sinking to the ground. Adrien flops usually in her arms, head dropping from her shoulder to the dip between her chin and neck.

There’s a picture on the screen. She recognizes it as a picture of her: Ladybug, taken not a week ago when someone caught a candid of her on patrol. She’s laughing in the picture, eyes bright, smile wide. Obviously looking at Chat Noir, even though he’s just outside the frame.

Next to the picture is also her, but. Other her. It’s one of the few pictures the media has of Marinette Dupain-Cheng. It’s a picture that was taken by the paparazzi one day when she was hanging out with Luka and Jagged Stone.

Side by side with a picture of Ladybug and the words of a supervillain to back it up, the Kwami magic breaks.

* * *

Marinette gets her shit together as she feels Adrien’s breath start to stutter against her neck. With Plagg nestled up between Adrien’s neck and Marinette’s shoulder, whispering words of comfort to the distraught girl, Marinette takes on the Ladybug Transformation once more.

She leaps off the side of the roof, swiftly makes her way toward the street where Nino’s apartment resides. It’s without a second thought that Ladybug kicks open an emergency exit toward the back of the building. There’s a set of winding stares that she bounds up, Adrien in tow.

It’s only as she drags in through the door to the hallway leading to Nino’s apartment door, that she drops the transformation. Tikki floats out of the earrings and gives her a look, before diving toward the said Miraculous.

“Tikki, what—“

“If Hawkmoth knows who Chat Noir is, Nino is especially compromised. This could be a trap,” Tikki says, reasonably. “I’d rather we not have a repeat of last time, Marinette.”

Marinette nods and with one hand swiftly helping the Kwami rid her of the earrings. Tikki then dives into the backpack, presumably to hide in the Kwami Box. Marinette turns to Plagg to tell him to do the same, but he just gives Marinette an icy look and dives into Adrien’s hoodie pocket.

Stealing herself, Marinette raps on the door sharply.

* * *

Nino is not happy. His exact words are “god fucking dammit” and honestly? That sums up Marinette’s entire day. She fixes up Adrien the best she can and then opens up her Kwami Box.

There’s a pause where she considers her choices.

The most obvious one is to use the Horse Miraculous to transport the Holder of her choosing to Paris for back up. It’s a foolproof plan and she’ll be working with someone she trusts and has history with. The obvious choices are Kagami and Alya, but Chloe might be a good pick as well.

She seriously doubts she has the time to teleport more than one person right now and brief them on, well, _everything_ , so she needs to make a choice quickly.

The thing is, now that identities have been revealed and they’re up against not only Hawkmoth, but the unknown variable that is Emilie Agreste, Marinette needs someone new, fresh and unpredictable.

“I have two options,” she distantly hears her voice say, as she glances down at Adrien’s fingers, which are entangled with her own. “I can do this alone” –bad idea, taking the time to teleport out of here and grab someone is even a better idea than that—“or…I can take a risk.”

Nino sounds as exhausted as she feels. “A risk?” he sighs, brow furrowed.

She hears herself reply her assent, as she starts forming out a plan. “I’m leaving the Kwamis with you. Well, except for Tikki and Fēng,” she decides, dropping her partners hand to open the Kwami Box. The earrings go back on and Tikki swoops down to give her Holder a peck on the cheek.

Marinette offers her Kwami a brief smile before choosing a black box with a dark pink crest on it.

 _This was such a bad fucking idea_.

“Tiger Miraculous,” she says, fingers tracing the crest. “It grants the power of camouflage.”

Nino asks her the difference between this Kwami and the Fox Kwami and Marinette explains tiredly before revealing that she has a Holder in mind.

Tikki doesn’t like it.

Whatever. Tikki didn’t like it when she’d asked her to reveal Chat Noir’s identity and Marinette still regrets nothing. The Kwami means well, but Marinette is an adult and the Guardian besides.

It’s time to see if Lila’s apology last year actually meant anything.

* * *

“ _F_ _ē_ _ng, stripes on!”_

Lila’s first transformation goes much better than Marinette’s had. Either the girl had watched too much anime growing up—like Chat—or she was just one of those people who had her shit on lock.

The transformation contained a few more flips and cartwheels than the Ladybug one was prone too, and moments later Lila was wearing a hot pink, stripped leather jacket with thigh high boots, and a black, skintight leotard with the faintest imprint of white stripes that _rippled_ in the light when she moved. Her mask gave off the same illusion as her leotard except it was the same color of pink as her jacket and her hair was pulled back into a ponytail that drew attention to her undercut.

Ladybug hates to admit it, but Lila looks fucking badass.

“Oh hell yeah,” Lila says flexing her fingers and examining the claws protruding—not unlike Chat Noir’s—from the black gloves adorning her hands. “This is so sick,” her new partner says, baring her teeth—and oh, Lila- _Tigress_ has _fangs_.

“Lila,” Ladybug sighs. “We don’t really have time—”

“Yeah, yeah, back to kicking ass.”

* * *

It’s morning by the time they’ve defeated the first five Akumas. The sixth one—conveniently the one that mortally wounded Adrien—has retreated into hiding. Ladybug and Tigress spend about half an hour trying to track it down before Ladybug gives up in frustration.

“Maybe he went back to Hawkmoth?” Tigress suggests.

Ladybug growls. “Probably. But we don’t know where Hawkmoth even _is_ right now.”

“Where was he when you figured out his identity?”

Ladybug shakes her head and focuses on the plan. “I don’t think he’s going to be at the Agreste Mansion. He knows that _we_ know that that’s his hideout. Were there any other places that Hawkmoth used when you worked with him?”

Tigress frowns, taping her booted foot against the concrete roof of the building. “There weren’t many, at least not that he would tell _me_.” She pauses. “Maybe it’s time for _us_ to go pay Mayura a visit.”

* * *

Getting past the Chief of Police is a far easier task than Marinate thought it would. Over the past few years, Ladybug, Chat Noir and various Kwami Holders have worked closely with law enforcement to bring Hawkmoth in. The relations between the two haven’t often been strained, but she had wondered, with the recent reveal, if it would go back to that brief stage during senior year where everyone had speculated that Ladybug and Chat Noir were minors.

That had been wholly frustrating, as the police department had become difficult to work with. However, over the past two years, things had evened out and gone back to normal, or whatever normal a bunch of superheroes and cops chasing after possessed butterflies could have.

So when Ladybug lands in front of the department where she knows they’re currently questioning Mayura, she expects to be detained.

What she doesn’t expect is for Chief Delpuech to personally greet her with an apologetic smile.

“Ladybug,” he says, sounded somewhere between relieved and exhausted. Which, honestly. Same. “You’re here for Mayura?”

“We have some questions for her,” Ladybug replies, crossing her arms.

He gives an agreeing nod. “I’m sure you do. Right this way.”

The Chief leads the two through the halls of the building to an interrogation room that Nathalie sits in the center of. She’s in a chair in front of a table with her hands handcuffed in front of her. The Chief rests one had on the doorknob. “It’ll just be me and one of my deputies on the other side,” he says. There’s a pause. “Miss Dupain-Cheng, I feel I must apologize. When she gave us your names, it was strictly confidential. The officer who leaked them to the news has been dealt with, but—”

Ladybug lays a hand on his shoulder and gives him a warm smile. “I do not blame you. I know you wouldn’t do anything to endanger us or your officers.”

He smiles back. “It has been an honor working with you, Ladybug.” At her confused look, he continues. “After tonight, I hand in my resignation. So you’d better catch this son of a bitch.”

Tigress gives a sharp smile. “Oh, we will.”

The Chief gives them one more nod before opening the door.

* * *

“Honestly, if you’d wanted to make a deal with them to give you less time, you should have gone with Hawkmoth’s identity,” Tigress scorns, leaning against the wall as she watches Nathalie glare at the two of them. “Giving them the names of their beloved heroes does nothing for you.”

“Really?” the woman sneers, “What makes you think it was to help myself?”

Ladybug sighs. “You wanted to ruin Adrien’s life to hurt him, didn’t you.”

Nathalie huffs. “Adrien and Emilie are the only people he cares about. After I gave him everything! With Emilie gone, Adrien is the only leverage I have against him.”

Ladybug and Tigress share a glance. “Unless, of course, you can give us his location,” Tigress says.

The former Mayura frowns. “What?”

“Hawkmoth is in hiding. If you can point us in the right direction, I’ll kick him in the head for you,” Tigress says, grin in place.

Nathalie looks from Ladybug to Tigress, a blank look on her face.

Ladybug sighs. “And we’ll talk about getting your sentence reduced. Deal?”

* * *

Turns out Hawkmoth’s _second_ secret hideout is in the top floor of some abandoned apartment buildings downtown. It took a few hours to find the exact one—Nathalie had been _very_ vague about its location—but once they located the right one, they almost immediately found Hawkmoth.

He was detransformed, sitting on the ground, holding a single white rose. The sun, slowly setting in the evening sky, streams through the huge windows, silhouetting the profile of her arch nemesis.

Ladybug cautiously walks up to him, unsure of how to proceed. “Hawkmoth?”

The man in question tilts his head up and meets her eyes. Something that looks faintly like a smile, but worlds away from one, crosses his face. “Miss Dupain-Cheng,” he says, trying out the name on his tongue. “The fashion prodigy.”

She swallows and releases her transformation. “Mr. Agreste,” Marinette says, voice unsteady.

He twirls the rose between his thumb and his index finger. “Why didn’t the wish work.”

“Magic comes at a price. Especially magic as ancient as the one you invoked.” She hesitates. Then, “I’m sorry.”

He huffs out a laugh. “You’re sorry I lost?”

“I’m sorry you lost someone.”

His eyes close briefly.

Marinette can just make out the final Akuma in her peripheral, hovering in the shadows, but she keeps her eyes trained on the man before her.

The rose flutters to the ground. Mr. Agreste stands up and adjusts his suit jacket. “Well then. Let’s get on with it.”

* * *

The fight ironically ends where the first one did. At the Eiffel Tower. Lila kicks Hawkmoth in the head and Ladybug breaks a headband to release the Akuma. One de-evilizing and _Miraculous Ladybug_ later and the city is back to normal.

Defeated, Hawkmoth releases his transformation and silently hands over his Miraculous to Ladybug. She takes it from him and kindly helps him to his feet before their surrounded by officers shouting at him back away from her.

As he’s handcuffed and manhandled into the back of a police car, he makes eye contact with Ladybug—Marinette, one last time.

“Look after him, Miss Dupain-Cheng,” Mr. Agreste says, voice gravely.

Ladybug nods. “I always have.”

The door closes and it’s the last time Ladybug sees Gabriel Agreste for a long, long time.

* * *

Lila drops the transformation as soon as they hit the rooftop. Marinette pockets the Butterfly Miraculous and hands over sweets to Tikki and Fēng. Its morning, a full two days since Lila had woken up her by slamming a book down on the nightstand. Two full days since Marinette has slept.

Marinette wraps her arms around Lila and drops her head onto her shoulder, smiling when the Italian girl makes a choked noise of protest.

“Thank you,” she mumbles, voice muffled by her friend’s shoulder.

Lila’s hands tentatively touch her shoulders. “I think that’s my line,” the girl’s voice is quiet.

Marinette pulls away. “What?”

“Thanks for trusting me and letting me kick Hawkmoth in the head?” she says, voice questioningly. “I’ll admit, it was therapeutic kicking the guy who manipulated me _twice_ , both as Hawkmoth and Gabriel. Another story for my therapist, I suppose.”

“You can’t _tell_ anybody,” Marinette laughs. “It’ll compromise your identity, which we don’t need more of after today.”

“It’s not as if I’m going to be Tigress again, though,” Lila scoffs.

Marinette blinks at her. “Why not?”

Now it was Lila’s turn to be confused. “Because I was your last resort and we defeated Hawkmoth anyway?”

The bluenette snorts. “Yeah, but I’m going to need all the help I can get if Emilie turns out to be a problem.”

Lila is quiet for a moment. “You’re okay with me being a long-term hero?” she finally asks, voice soft.

Marinette places a hand on the taller girl’s shoulder. “I’m counting on you being a long-term hero.”

* * *

The day after the end of the world starts like this:

Adrien takes a shower and Marinette calls her (other) best friend. She and Alya both cry for about three hours and she hangs up with the promise to call her again after she’s eaten and rested. Marinette takes a nap in Nino’s bedroom and Adrien passes out on the couch after his shoulder for another three hours. He wakes up to Nino and Lila arguing and retreats to find his lady.

Marinette and Adrien’s day _ends_ like this:

Adrien tells her he loves her.

They still have to talk. His mother is still out there, and Gabriel and Nathalie will be going on trial soon, and they have to figure out how to handle the press. It’s the wrong time to give declarations of love, especially considering Marinette’s barely half a year out of her breakup, but it’s still exactly what she needs to hear.

That night, before she leaves with Lila to sleep at her apartment again, she pulls Adrien aside into the kitchen.

“Hey,” she says.

“Hey,” he grins in response, eyes chasing her lips.

Marinette keeps them just out of reach and cups his face instead. “I love you, too.”

Adrien’s grin softens into something tenderer. His hands reach up to wrap around her wrists, as he kisses the palm of one of the hands touching his face.

“Looks like I got lucky for once.”

Both of their days end in a kiss that turns into a make out session, much to Nino’s annoyance when he walks in on the two.

Considering their recent history, it is an infinitely better day than the last.

* * *

**Author's Note:**

> it's fucking midnight and i've gotta wake up in like 6 hours to go to work and my internet is being dumb, but here have 7k of my babies suffering and the lilanette agenda


End file.
